The recent release of MySQL 5.6 by Oracle marks its first major update in two years, focusing on improvements to compete with the rising popularity of NoSQL databases. Despite these enhancements, the author believes that MySQL's schema-based architecture cannot match the flexibility and scalability offered by NoSQL systems, which are increasingly preferred by developers for modern applications. While MySQL 5.6 introduces features like an online data definition language and a memcached API, these are seen as superficial changes that do not address the fundamental architectural differences between relational and NoSQL technologies. The author argues that the new trends in application development, which demand flexible data models and high scalability, align more with the strengths of NoSQL databases. This shift doesn't imply the obsolescence of MySQL or relational databases, but rather highlights the growing diversity of database technologies available to developers. The author expresses disappointment that Oracle did not continue developing the Handlersocket approach, which offered a more seamless integration between relational and NoSQL capabilities, and criticizes Oracle's current NoSQL efforts as restrictive and underperforming compared to previous solutions.